Isaac’s POV
Isaac stood on top of the watchtower, a part of the outer city wall connected to Aeternum University’s stronghold.
It was high, but not high enough to see the entire city.
That didn’t matter to him.
It was high enough for what he needed to do.
He glanced down at the device in his hand. Still nothing.
He checked again.
Then, finally, a ping came from Celia.
Celia: On my way.
Isaac let out a short breath. “Finally.”
He rolled his shoulder once, then turned to the weapon resting beside the wall.
It was a long spear, forged from Hell-Iron Myre by Tyr.
It was just a prototype.
Tyr had been testing what he could do with the metal, and he had created it days ago.
Celia had brought it from the blacksmith shop in the Sanctum of Masters’ stronghold.
The spear wasn’t complete. Its finish was rough, and the balance was a little off. But none of that mattered.
He lifted it, gave it a test spin, then nodded to himself.
Good enough.
He checked the device one more time. Then he tapped out a message to Vice Principal Eleanor.
…
Eleanor’s POV
Eleanor’s chest rose and fell with heavy breaths. She stood in the middle of what was once a defensive formation.
Now, it was barely a field of survivors.
The battlefield was quiet. Too many had fallen. The healers had done their part, saving lives and keeping the worst of the wounds from becoming fatal. But everyone had reached their limits.
Kaela had collapsed minutes ago. Even now, she was lying behind Eleanor, breathing, but unconscious.
Eleanor glanced around. Fewer than ten were still standing. Some were limping. Some just stood there, their hands trembling too much to grip a weapon.
Then her device made a sharp sound.
A specific emergency ringtone.
Her eyes narrowed instantly.
That tone was only reserved for one person: Isaac.
She tapped the screen and read the message.
Please bring the N’theris Serpent near the area where the Assassin Headquarters used to be. Or the Metavore Hive. I’ll handle it.
“What…?” she muttered under her breath.
She looked back at the battlefield. The N’theris Serpent still had two lives left. The exhausted fighters were resting or unconscious.
The serpent wouldn’t wait forever.
Eleanor frowned at the message. She could already feel the doubt creeping in.
But then she thought of Isaac.
He wasn’t reckless. He never took chances without thinking several steps ahead. He was always calm, and measured.
He must’ve had a reason to say this now.
“I’ll trust you,” she whispered.
Without wasting time, she ran.
She moved across the broken landscape, leaping over fallen stone, skidding past blood and dust, and moving toward the last place the Assassin’s HQ had stood.
It didn’t take much to bait the serpent.
She was the strongest person on the battlefield. And the N’theris Serpent, driven by its primal hunger, followed her like a hound sensing a trail of meat.
She reached the ruined zone and looked around, still wondering what Isaac’s plan actually was.
Then the ground erupted.
Thick roots—massive, truck-sized—burst from below like the arms of a giant creature. Each one was the width of a tree trunk and twice as fast. They coiled around the serpent, snapping around its torso and lifting it slightly into the air.
The beast hissed, its scales grinding as it thrashed against the roots.
…
Isaac’s POV
Five Minutes Earlier
I watched the message send and disappear into the network.
Now it was time.
I’d already given Alice the SSS-rank Innate Marksmanship days ago.
Now it was my turn to share it.
’Share SSS-rank Innate Marksmanship!’
The sensation was immediate. Information surged into my head. I could feel it spread into my muscles, my eyes, my sense of balance.
I knew where to throw.
How to throw.
How to read the wind, the angles, the distance, the shifting of the ground.
How to curve an arrow through ten gaps and hit the beating heart of a monster hidden behind steel walls.
Except I didn’t have arrows. I had a spear.
“Spear will work too.”
I continued.
’Share Flame of Judgment!’
Flame of Judgment: Level 1 → Level 3.
My hand pulsed with golden heat.
I raised the spear.
Flames began to wrap around it.
A second spear, forged entirely out of golden fire, layered itself over the metal one.
My muscles tensed. My stance shifted. I locked my feet into place.
And I waited.
I extended my senses.
The land beneath me was my ally. I had cultivated it with my energy months ago. I could feel patches where I had once planted poisonous flowers.
Then, something shifted.
Near the ruins of the Assassin Headquarters, I felt something massive slam down. It crushed several of my old flower patches instantly.
“You are here.”
I summoned the roots.
The ground responded like it had been waiting.
Thick vines, stronger than concrete, wrapped around the N’theris Serpent. I couldn’t see it directly, but I could feel its shape.
Tall. Thick. Constantly writhing.
That was enough.
I pulled my arm back. My body was already shaking from the strain.
And I threw it.
The watchtower below me exploded from the sheer force.
The spear burned the sky gold.
It tore through buildings like they were made of dust. It screamed forward in a line, aimed directly at the thing that had stepped on my land.
…
Eleanor’s POV
The serpent thrashed against the roots. It was furious.
But even though the roots were starting to crack under the pressure, they still held it in place, but only barely.
“Keep it trapped!” Eleanor shouted, hoping someone still had the energy to help.
To her surprise, Kaela stumbled into view with a few nagas behind her. Their clothes were torn, their faces pale, but they still moved forward.
“Attack it now!” Kaela shouted. “It’s trapped! Hit it before it breaks free!”
Somehow, even in her state, she rallied them.
The nagas drew their weapons and moved to assist.
But Eleanor felt something.
A strange pull in her gut.
Her hair stood on end.
“Kaela! Get back!” she shouted. “Everyone, move!”
But the words hadn’t even finished leaving her mouth before it happened.
A golden flash.
Then—
Boom.
The serpent’s upper body exploded.
Eleanor didn’t blink. Her eyes caught it all.
A spear. No—a flaming bolt. A weapon, moving faster than naked eyes could follow, had come from far away, so far she couldn’t even see the source.
But she could trace the path. In a perfect line, buildings had been split in half. The air was burning.
The serpent collapsed, its upper body gone.
A split second later, the shockwave hit.
Golden flames surged out. The explosion pushed her back. Everyone around her was thrown to the ground.
When she rolled to a stop, dust filled the air. Her ears rang.
